Meath have a familiar look

Down and Meath share a few traits. Guided spiritually and physically by long-serving managers of gentle disposition, they are among those few counties who never get written off when the summer stayers are being elected. Meetings between them are never without intrigue.

At Newcastle yesterday the President, Mrs McAleese, was in attendance as the sun played hide and seek behind the Donard and the teams gave little peaks of what they might be capable of when the ground gets drier.

The game produced a draw and the lingering feeling that silverware might flash in Navan before it visits Rostrevor.

Down will point to their depleted resources. So too will Meath, but Sean Boylan has more aces up his sleeve. In the end, Meath needed a last-minute score to secure the draw, but their hour of work left the impression that hard nights yomping up and down the Hill of Tara had stolen most of their light-footedness.

Meath had been assembling some eye-catching statistics over the winter. Having scored 6-33 before yesterday's game, they had exhibited extraordinary parsimony at the back, too: when Gerald Deegan fisted a point for Down in injury time of the first half it was the first score from play conceded by Meath since the 17th minute of their opening game against Clare. After almost 200 minutes of meanness, Deegan's achievement deserved more recognition than it got.

Meath have a little tradition of submitting fine performances before Christmas and then slowing up a little after the interval. This year's deceleration is no more alarming than any of the others. Meath have a fine side which can only get better when a few of its stars are restored to it. Yesterday's error-strewn hour had enough goodness in it to keep the promise of summer.

They looked comfortable playing with the wind in the first half, and, having fallen behind to an early free from Shane Mulholland, they picked away at Down with Richie Keally and Ollie Murphy ducking and diving effectively in the forward line. Jody Devine, picked at full forward, played as a fleet-footed third midfielder, a tactic which caused Down considerable unease early on.

Keally left the field injured before the break, but the options available to Meath are enviable. Nigel Nestor and Nigel Crawford at midfield yesterday enjoyed slightly better the parity over their rivals, even though it was the latter's third big game in five days.

Graham Geraghty switched to centre forward from the centre back position when Keally retired, and that option is always available. By summer, with Trevor Giles, Tommy Dowd and John McDermott (a brief cameo yesterday) back in full flight, Meath will be formidable.

Yesterday they were adequate, slightly better perhaps. Ray McGee never gave more than hints of the promise he showed before the Christmas as they got to the break with a two-point lead which scarcely reflected their fluency.

For Down, the forward positions still appear to be the ones which will give Down trouble in the summer. Mickey Linden may return to wring one more fling out of his career, and Conor Deegan will surely bring a sticky pair of hands to the midfield. But the loss of Greg McCartan is a big blow.

There are bright spots though. Debutante Ciaran Byrne was convincing at full back, and one of those whose name would have been mentioned in connection with the captaincy, Micheal Magill, had a fine game; sweeping majestically from the centre back position, he looked as commanding as any occupant of the pivot since Barry Breen was in his prime.

The finish was hectic. Down had the better of the second half as the game grew increasingly physical and robust, and we expected a red card before the final whistle. Instead, we got the customary Meath death rattle. With his team trailing by a point, Graham Geraghty hoisted a fine kick which Ray McGee flicked to the net only to have the score disallowed for an infringement in the square.

A minute later, McGee, not to be rebuffed, launched a long free from the hands which sailed between the posts to level the game.

Both parties emerged satisfied with an afternoon which left Meath sharing the lead in Division One B with Kildare.

Down: C Rice; F Caulfield, C Byrne, P Mathews; D Flynn, M Magill (0-1), P Higgins; B Burns, S Poland; Gregory Deegan, S Mulholland (0-3, all frees), J McCartan; Gerald Deegan (0- 2), C McCabe, L Parr. Subs: D McCartan for McCabe (50 mins).

Meath: C Sullivan; M O'Reilly, D Fay, D Curtis; H Traynor, T Geraghty (0-1), P Reynolds; N Nes- tor (0-1), N Crawford; N Kearney, R Keally (0-1), P Shankey; R McGee (0-1, a free), J Devine, O Murphy (0-2). Subs: J McDermott for Keally (25 mins), E Kelly for P Shankey (41 mins).

Referee: M McGrath (Donegal).